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Author: Sue O'Connell
Publisher: Amberley Publishing Limited
Published: 2016-07-15
Total Pages: 232
ISBN-13: 1445654695
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →A novel about the remarkable life of the Irishman Patrick O'Connell, appointed as manager of FC Barcelona at the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936, and generally recognised as the man who saved the club from bankruptcy.
Author: Simon Kuper
Publisher: Penguin
Published: 2022-08-16
Total Pages: 433
ISBN-13: 0593297733
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →With rare and unrivaled access, bestselling coauthor of Soccernomics and longtime Financial Times journalist Simon Kuper tells the story of how FC Barcelona became the most successful club in the world—and how that era is now ending FC Barcelona is not just the world’s highest grossing sports club, it is simply one of the most influential organizations on the planet. At last count, it had approximately 214 million social media followers, more than any other sports club except Real Madrid CF—and by one earlier measure, more than all thirty-two NFL teams combined. It has more in common with multinational megacompanies like Netflix or small nation-states than it does with most soccer teams. No wonder its motto is “More than a club.” But it was not always so. In the past three decades, Barcelona went from a regional team to a global powerhouse, becoming a model of sustained excellence and beautiful soccer, and a consistent winner of championships. Simon Kuper unravels exactly how this transformation took place, paying special attention to the club’s two biggest stars, Johan Cruyff and Lionel Messi, who is arguably the greatest soccer player of all time. Messi joined Barça at age thirteen and, more than anyone, has been the engine and standard-bearer of Barcelona’s glory. But his era is coming to an end—and with it, a once-in-a-lifetime golden run. This book charts Barça’s rise and fall. Like many world-beating organizations, FC Barcelona closely guards its secrets, granting few outsiders access to the Camp Nou, its legendary home stadium. But after decades of writing about the sport and the club, Kuper was given access to the inner sanctum and the people behind the scenes who strive daily to keep Barcelona at the top. Erudite, personal, and capturing all the latest upheavals, his portrait of this incredible institution goes beyond soccer to understand FC Barcelona as a unique social, cultural, and political phenomenon.
Author: Sid Lowe
Publisher: Random House
Published: 2013-09-26
Total Pages: 452
ISBN-13: 1446496635
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →‘A history of modern Spain told through one of world football's most intense rivalries’ Independent ‘Sports Book of the Year’ Sunday Times It’s Messi vs Ronaldo, it’s Catalonia vs Castilla. It’s the nation against the state, freedom fighters vs Franco’s fascists. It’s majestic goals and mesmerising skills, red cards and bench brawls. It’s the best two teams on the planet going face to face and toe to toe. It’s more than a game. It’s a war. It’s Barcelona vs Real Madrid. Only, it’s not that simple. From the wounds left by the civil war to the teams’ recent global domination, historian and expert on Spanish football, Sid Lowe lifts the lid on sport’s greatest rivalry. Lowe has spoken to the biggest names and the forgotten heroes who defined their clubs. Men like Alfredo Di Stéfano and Johan Cruyff as well as the only survivor of the most politically charged game in history, the Barcelona striker who knocked Madrid out of the European Cup for the first time ever, and the president who celebrated his club’s defining moment by taking a midnight dip in the Thames. By exploring the history, politics, culture, economics and language, while never forgetting the drama on the pitch, Lowe demonstrates the symbiotic nature of the relationship between these two football giants. In doing so he reveals the human story behind this explosive rivalry.
Author: Damian Hughes
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
Published: 2018-08-09
Total Pages: 302
ISBN-13: 1509804412
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →'Does culture create competitive advantage? Case closed in this compelling analysis of sporting success. Read it.' – James Kerr, bestselling author of Legacy. In The Barcelona Way, sports psychologist Prof. Damian Hughes draws on exclusive insight into FCB as well as first-hand research from organizational psychology, to set out a method to create your own high-performance culture. At the heart of FCB’s winning culture are a set of principles, epitomized by Pep Guardiola, Johan Cruyff, Lionel Messi and many other FCB legends, which govern how to nurture talent, prepare for change and provide the best environment to build a culture of sustained success. These principles: Big Picture, Arc of Change, Repetition, Cultural Architects, Authentic Leadership are at the heart of FCB’s unprecedented domination of football, and are the key to developing high-performance cultures in any team-based organisation across every industry. The Barcelona Way is a hugely practical must-read that sets out a clear plan, based on the same principles, for you to create a culture of success and get the best of yourself and your team.
Author: Jon M. Fishman
Publisher: Lerner Digital ™
Published: 2019-08-01
Total Pages: 32
ISBN-13: 1541576012
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →Audisee® eBooks with Audio combine professional narration and text highlighting for an engaging read aloud experience! Lionel Messi is one of the best soccer players in the world. He's led his team—Fútbol Club (FC) Barcelona—to several championships, he's won the FIFA Ballon d'Or award five times, and he's been on the cover of the video game EA Sports FIFA four times. Messi is known for his amazing ability to score goals, but he didn't become a soccer superstar without plenty of hard work. Learn how Messi keeps his body fit for the game, what his life is like off the pitch, and more.
Author: Frits Barend
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Published: 1999-02-01
Total Pages: 288
ISBN-13: 9780747543053
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →In these interviews, Cruyff talks about how he learned his trade and how he went on to play for Barcelona and Ajax. He also explores the philosophy behind total football, the driving force behind the great Dutch side of the 70s and a style of football many top teams attempt to emulate today.
Author: Simon Kuper
Publisher: Short Books
Published: 2022-06-23
Total Pages: 0
ISBN-13: 9781780725543
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →WINNER OF THE FOOTBALL BOOK OF THE YEAR 'This is a masterfully written history of the world's greatest football club. Més que un book!' - GARY LINEKER From the bestselling co-author of Soccernomics comes the story of how FC Barcelona became the most successful football club in the world - and how that envied position now hangs in the balance. Barça is not just the world's most popular sports club, it is simply one of the most influential organisations on the planet. With almost 250 million followers on social media and 4 million visitors to its Camp Nou stadium each year, there's little wonder its motto is 'More than a club'. But it was not always so. In the past three decades, Barcelona has transformed from regional team to global powerhouse, becoming a model of sporting excellence and a consistent winner of silverware. Simon Kuper unravels exactly how these transformations took place. He outlines the organisational structure behind the club's business decisions, and details the work of its coaches, medics, data analysts and nutritionists who have revolutionised the sporting world. And, of course, he studies the towering influence of the club's two greatest legends, Johan Cruyff and Lionel Messi. Like many leading global businesses, FC Barcelona closely guards its secrets, granting few outsiders a view behind the scenes. But, after decades of writing about the sport and the club, Kuper was given unprecedented access to the inner sanctum and to the people who strive daily to keep Barcelona at the top. Erudite, personal, and capturing all the latest successes and upheavals, his portrait of this incredible institution goes beyond football to understand Barça as a unique social, cultural, and political phenomenon. "I began my research thinking I was going to be explaining Barca's rise to greatness, and I have, but I've also ended up charting the decline and fall."
Author: Jonathan Wilson
Publisher: Nation Books
Published: 2018-11-06
Total Pages: 352
ISBN-13: 1568588534
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →From Cruyff's "Total Football" to the epic rivalry between Guardiola and Mourinho, a gripping chronicle of the rise and fall of Barcelona's dominance in world soccer. Barcelona's style of play--pressing and possessing--is the single biggest influence on modern soccer. In The Barcelona Inheritance, Jonathan Wilson reveals how and why this came to pass, offering a deep analysis of the evolution of soccer tactics and style. In the late 1990s, Johan Cruyff's Dream Team was disintegrating and the revolutionary manager had departed, but his style gave birth to a new generation of thinkers, including Pep Guardiola and José Mourinho. Today, their teams are first and second in the Premier League, marking the latest installment in a rivalry that can be traced back twenty-five years. The Barcelona Inheritance is a book about the tactics, the personalities, the friendships, and, in one case, an apocalyptic falling-out that continue to shape the game today.
Author: Graham Hunter
Publisher: BackPage Press
Published: 2012-09-13
Total Pages: 402
ISBN-13: 0956497152
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →FC Barcelona are the greatest football team in the world, the greatest for a generation and possibly the greatest of all time. This is the inside story of how the team came to redefine how the game is played, told by the journalist closer to it than any other. This edition contains a new epilogue reflecting on the departure of Pep Guardiola and Spain's victory at Euro 2012.
Author: Albert Folch
Publisher:
Published: 2013-10-10
Total Pages: 258
ISBN-13: 9781492958901
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →This book tells the story of how FC Barcelona has managed to build one of the best soccer teams in the world using primarily the players from its youth academy (nicknamed "La Masia" - the farmhouse). During the 2013-2014 season, 17 of the 25 players of the first team were from La Masia, a historical record. These players, including Messi, Iniesta, and Xavi, have dazzled soccer fans around the world with their dance-like positioning and passing skills. La Masia now trains kids from all continents, including its first American, Ben Lederman. This book reveals that this accumulation of talent is not a coincidence but the result of a 30 year-long plan, set in motion by the brilliant mind of Dutch coach and ex-Barça player Johan Cruyff. Cruyff brought to Barça the attacking, 4-3-3-based soccer style known as Total Football and converted La Masia into a high-throughput factory of players for the first team. Cruyff's brightest pupil, Pep Guardiola (from La Masia), became the coach that won three Ligas in a row and two Champions Leagues in four years with a team full of homegrown players. They have been playing soccer together since their teens and they are all close friends. Some even attend college, which shows that the club cares for education. The author reveals here that the strategy followed by most rich clubs to be at the top (purchase the best players and sell their homegrown) is not self-sustainable because the investors' money does not come from soccer. La Masia, on the other hand, has saved Barça millions of euros. Will the MLS learn this valuable lesson and promote its youth academies, or will it let American soccer fall in the hands of big businesses?
